Gender Differences in Factors Related to Prehospital Delay in Patients with ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of our study was to investigate gender differences in factors related to prehospital delay and identify whether the knowledge of acute myocardial infarction symptoms affects this delay in Korean patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

Materials and methods: A total of 350 patients (286 men, 64 women) with confirmed STEMI were interviewed to investigate socio-demographics, history of disease, symptom onset time, and factors that contributed to delayed decision time in seeking treatment and hospital arrival time from symptom onset. Factors associated with prehospital delay were examined separately by gender using univariate and multivariate analyses.

Results: Female patients had higher proportions of ≥60-minute decision time and ≥120-minute arrival time compared to male patients (33.9% vs. 23.1%, 60.9% vs. 52.1%, respectively). However, the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.093 and 0.214, respectively). Previous cardiovascular disease (CVD) was associated with increased decision time in men, whereas, in women, lower educational status caused a greater delay in decision time. Factors associated with hospital arrival time excluding delayed decision time were referral from another hospital, previous CVD, and percutaneous coronary intervention in men, and referral from another hospital in women.

Conclusion: Gender differences exist in factors related to prehospital delay. Therefore, public education to reduce prehospital delay should be conducted according to gender with a focus on the pertinent factors.

Keywords: Acute coronary syndrome; healthcare timeout; sex differences.

Fig. 1. Proportion for patients of the ≥60 minutes of symptoms to decision seek help time and the ≥120 minutes of symptoms to emergency room arrival time between male and female. Error bars on the bar chart is standard error.